Monday, September 26, 2011

Summer just ended this past weekend, and it is already the start of autumn, where football is afoot and in-depth.

Olympic qualifying for the automatic spots just finished yesterday. China is the last amongst the FIBA regions to lock up an automatic spot with their win over Jordan by a point. They join Great Britain, Tunisia, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France and the United States. The three remaining spots will be fought over in a wildcard tournament. 12 countries (Angola, Nigeria, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Jordan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia, Macedona, Lithuania and Greece) get a shot at those slots.

Why am I discussing basketball? Well, the Motherland had a chance to seal its first berth in ages if they beat the Koreans, which they were not able to fulfill (again). It's their best finish though after 27 years, so it's a positive sign.

The other thing? My alma mater is one game away from clinching its fourth straight men's basketball championship.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

We know that the government does not really have much financial clout to do much, and if they do, they need to allocate it to the proper parties. So, it is appropriate to do fundraisers of their own to achieve the needed money to get what they need. And, it is up to us to provide the means to help those who deserve it.

I am writing here about a certain cause being undertaken by a couple of professors (Eloi Hernandez and Grace Gregorio) at the University of the Philippines. These two individuals are also the mentors and guardians of the multi-awarded University of the Philippines Pep Squad. Yup, if you recall last weekend, they did a Madonna routine

The UP Pep Squad is something that not just the Iskolar ng Bayan would be proud of, but for all of us Filipinos. In fact, they will be representing our country in a competition later this year (the 6th Cheerleading World Championships), not unlike SMART-Gilas in Wuhan or our beloved Azkals, whose manager Dan Palami has already tweeted his appreciation for the school.

Of course, so that the Pep Squad can prepare for the competition, they'll need new equipment, specifically mats, about 300 of them. Now these mats cost 900 a piece, so it's a little pricey. Like what I said above, the school does not exactly have the finances to shell out, so let's do our role and chip in, if you can. Now as of the latest information, they have already secured enough for 264, so they need just a little more. If you want to make a pledge to help, you can donate here:

The statistic that a journalist created in the 70s has said to be the most overrated one amongst all the different statistics being recorded in the national pastime. It changed the game from what it was back then, to what it is now with the specialization of the pitcher. Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated wrote about it.

His legend continues to grow, and it looks like he is not finished yet writing his epitaph.

Congratulations, Mariano. It is as if he needs this record to validate his greatness. Nope. He already has it way before he came close to 602.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Yesterday left an indelible mark on everyone. I hope you took the time to remember and reflect and appreciate what went on this day. I watched the different tributes and it was chillin' and stunning. I hope we all do not have to experience this ever again.

Friday, September 9, 2011

The final two playdates of the UAAP Season 74 are this weekend. The postseason cast is set. The only thing that needs to be settled is the format. If you don't know how, it's relatively simple.

Ateneo - 13-0
Adamson - 9-4
UST - 8-5
FEU - 8-5

Final games of the UAAP regular season:

UP vs UE
Adamson vs Ateneo

NU vs UST
La Salle vs FEU

The Soaring Falcons can formally book their 2nd place finish if they beat Ateneo, something they can do for the first time since the Fidel V. Ramos administration. If they fail to do so, Ateneo seals their regular season sweep, the third in the history of the UAAP since the Final Four format (UST in 1993, UE in 2007). That then would open the possibility for FEU and UST to grab said 2nd slot and force a playoff against Adamson with that on the line..

Here are the scenarios involving the Tamaraws and the Growling Tigers:

If both win: Triple tie, with FEU taking fourth due to their quotient, AdU and UST fight for 2nd.
If either win: Tied with Adamson, force playoff, loser faces FEU in knockout.
If neither win: no playoff necessary. UST vs FEU knockout, winner faces a twice-to-beat Adamson. Winner then faces a thrice-to-beat Ateneo.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Season 87 of the NCAA will, in all likelihood, remain a two-horse race between San Sebastian and San Beda, with Letran trying to chase them down. As for the final spot, anybody can grab it from currently fourth place Mapua to last place Perpetual.

Like I tweeted, it's now all about the scheduling, so let's see where each team has.

Both Lyceum and Benilde have to face the top three teams, whilst Mapua just finished one and will face the other two back-to-back. On the other hand, Arellano and JRU only has to face San Beda and EAC only has to face Letran.

So, let's factor in the SSC, SBC and Letran games as losses, because face it, do you really think they can beat those guys? I know anything can happen, but it feels very very unlikely...

That's 5 teams with 10 losses, which means the most wins you can get is 8. That puts Perpetual virtually out of the running, unless they run the table AND Mapua ending their season on a 6 game losing skid.

The battle royale lies with those 5 teams potentially 10 losses on the docket. Those games are very very intriguing.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Greetings to everyone and welcome to the latest edition of The Victory Formation.

First off, Happy Labor Day. You know when this holiday comes, you can smell the sweetness of football. You already had your taste of Saturday football, based on the comments during the weekend. What more this week, when the big boys get to do their thing, kicking off on Thursday Night.

As for me, I am also giddy this weekend. My alma mater is one win away from sweeping the regular season after last Saturday. Click the link there and Lefty might find someone famillar.